First impressions

On the 19th of August 2014 at 20 past 6 in the morning, it was finally time. My adventure as WURldexplorer began. Destination: Lund, Sweden. After a flight from Amsterdam to Copenhagen and a train ride over sea into Sweden, I arrived in a town I had never been before, but which would be my home for the upcoming six months: Lund.

I have been here for quite a while now and the time has flown by, but at the same time it feels that I’ve been here for ages already. It was a very intense time with a lot of new people, cultures and activities. In the following stories, I will give a small overview of my (first) impressions of Lund. I will begin this one with the city itself.

When I arrived in Lund, I did not have much of a culture shock. Inconstant weather (a day of bright sun ending in a heavy rainfall) is not unusual. A very well arranged and regulated country. And bicycles everywhere! Lund is probably one of the few cities in Sweden were bikes are used, with the result that all bike shops of the country are centered in one place (I think Lund has at least 15 of them). The infrastructure is adjusted to bikes, although slightly different than in Holland. Bicycle lines here tend to randomly disappear into nothing or suddenly merge with the sidewalk, causing tricky but funny situations.

Furthermore, Lund is a beautiful town, with a rich history. It has a lot of medieval buildings and the University buildings of the different faculties are spread all over town. Maybe one of the most famous and beautiful ones is the University library, which is totally covered in ivy, making it almost fairytale-like.

Sweden is a very friendly country, but at the same time a very strict one. They have got their rules and people stick to them. In one of the first days already, all the international exchange students were given a presentation by the police and the fire department to make sure we knew exactly what was forbidden and what not (they even explained the meaning of a STOP sign). Also on the train ride from Denmark to Sweden, the police entered the train with a dog to check if we were not carrying any drugs.

But living in a town with so many students has its advantages, apparently Lund is the only place in Sweden were it is legal to drink alcohol in public! (or at least the police doesn’t care)